Deep Analysis – Play-By-Play Against Faeries

I haven’t yet done a Steve Menendian play-by-play matchup in Lorwyn / Shadowmoor Block Constructed, and as time is quickly running out before Eventide comes in and (hope, hope – no, seriously, please) turns the format on its ear, now seems to be one of my last chances to pit the Triple Tribe deck I’ve been tuning against the Big Bad Fae in glorious play-by-play.

Not to spoil the ending, but I wasn’t thrilled with the results of this set, though several interesting situations came up that will hopefully give you some insight into how the Faeries are thinking (if you’re a non-Faerie player) and how people are playing against them (if you are a Faeries player).

Here’s my final build from last week:

Let’s get to it!

Match 1:

I chose Max Tietze winning list from the Roanoke PTQ, as it embodies the elements of a Faeries list that I hear are becoming important to success: Peppersmoke and Thoughtseize main. I also like that it retains some degree of Broken Ambitions, meaning there are still consequences if I don’t play around it.

Game 1: I win the coin flip. My opener is a one-lander that I cannot possibly keep. I mulligan into Vivid Meadow, Vivid Grove, Thoughtseize, Vanquisher, Colossus, and Cloudthresher. Slow, but not worth going to five over. Faeries’s opening hand is Secluded Glen, two Mutavaults, Spellstutter Sprite, Mistbind Clique, Sower of Temptation, Cryptic Command. If your playtest partner says to keep that handful of goodies, he’s fired! The phrase “unconscionably slow” comes to mind. The six-card Faeries hand is Island, Sunken Ruins, Mutavault, Bitterblossom, Spellstutter Sprite, Scion of Oona.

Which land do I lead with? Vivid Grove or Vivid Meadow? Well, given that I’m going to want to Thoughtseize on turn 2, whichever land I play will probably end up losing a counter; which one would I prefer take the hit? The answer to this question almost always depends exclusively on your hand; which color of mana are you more likely to need, White or Green? Looking at that Cloudthresher in my hand, it’s clear that I will need an abundance of Green sources if I am to ever hardcast it. (It’s also not inconceivable that I topdeck Ancient Amphitheaters and cannot even Evoke it without the Meadow’s Vivid counters helping out the Grove’s natural ability.) Given that, it seems best to play the Grove here, and remove one of its counters next turn to pay for Thoughtseize. That will give me the maximum number of counters on my Meadow with which to help pay for Thresher. Play the Grove and pass.

Faeries draws an Island and plays it.

I draw another Vivid Grove and play it. I remove a counter from my first Grove to play Thoughtseize. Naturally, I take Bitterblossom.

Faeries draws Sower of Temptation and plays Mutavault.

I draw Reflecting Pool. I have an interesting choice here; if Faeries topdecked Broken Ambitions and I play Wren’s Run Vanquisher here, I’m playing right into it. I could protect against it by playing Reflecting Pool, but then on turn 4 I will have only a Vivid Meadow for a fourth land, whose comes-in-tapped downside will mean I will not be able to play the Chameleon Colossus in my hand unless I topdeck a land next turn. On the other hand, I could be walking right into a Broken Ambitions here… so which land do I play alongside the Vanquisher? The Reflecting Pool or the Vivid Meadow?

Well, let’s say I’m trying to dodge Broken Ambitions here. I play Reflecting Pool and Wren’s Run Vanquisher, revealing my only Elf – Chameleon Colossus. My opponent, now knowing that I have a Colossus in hand… wastes the counter he just topdecked on the Vanquisher? I think not. Any way you slice it, if he topdecked the Ambitions, my Colossus is getting countered; I may as well at least try to play him on turn four, so that if my opponent has not topdecked the Ambitions, I will get to resolve my 4/4 beater. Play the Vanquisher (it resolves, obviously, since Faeries topdecked Sower of Temptation instead of Broken Ambitions) and the Vivid Meadow.

Faeries draws another Island and plays Sunken Ruins. Clearly you don’t play the Island you just drew here (as in, without shuffling it around in your hand first), as that would inform the opponent that you drew a blank. Sunken Ruins makes more sense than Island here because it might make the opponent wary of Nameless Inversion; remember, he doesn’t know what card you drew last turn or this turn.

I draw Ancient Amphitheater. Quick check: what’s my play here? Do I attack first, or play a land and the Colossus first? One danger of attacking first is that he might Pestermite a land and chump, keeping me off Colossus this turn. However, that would be silly; he knows I have the Colossus because I revealed it, so if he really wanted to keep me off Colossus mana, he would have just summoned it in my upkeep. The far more concerning play is a mid-attack Vendilion Clique. That would allow him to remove the Colossus from my hand and trade with the Vanquisher mid-combat.

As with the Pestermite play, one would expect the Vending to occur during my upkeep (or draw step, in this case), so I think I can breathe easy on that one as well. Still, since he does not have Cryptic Command mana yet, I don’t see any big downsides to playing the Colossus pre-combat in case my opponent is holding a Vendilion Clique and did not think to use it during my draw step. If he made that mistake, it is my duty to capitalize on it.

Which land do I play? The Reflecting Pool or the Amphitheater? Easy; play the one I can’t play untapped next turn once my Changeling is no longer in my hand. Thus, I play the Amphitheater, reveal Colossus, play Colossus, and attack with Vanquisher. I am not shocked to learn that Mutavault does not feel like chumping. Scion of Oona is played on my end step.

Faeries draws Thoughtseize. Masterful! That’ll be the end of the Cloudthresher that was threatening the Sower of Temptation. Cast it, take the Thresher, play an Island. Regrettably, as the only Black source in play is Sunken Ruins, an extra mana has to be floated and wasted (it is sunk into a Mutavault activation), leaving only Mutavault and Island untapped to cast Spellstutter Sprite for two next turn. Do I attack with Scion of Oona here? Well, if I attack and don’t chump the Colossus with Mutavault, I take 8 from it (assuming either the Vanquisher doesn’t attack into the 3/3 Mutavault or it attacks and trades with it, either of which are okay), which would take the life totals to 7-17 in Triple Tribe’s favor. Then on the following turn I could untap and play Sower on the tapped Colossus, and the Scion would still be around to protect it from spot removal. I’d take 3 more from the Vanquisher, putting me at 4, but I would then be able to untap with Colossus in play, Spellstutter Sprite in hand, and four points of power in the air.

If I chump the Colossus with Mutavault on my upcoming turn and the Vanquisher doesn’t attack, however, I could be as high as 15 life instead of 7 when I play the Sower. If he attacks with the Vanquisher, I can trade with it and end up with an air force, a Colossus, and no Deathtouch defender getting in the way of my 4/4. By now it’s clear that I won’t be needing to chump with Scion next turn, so I send it into the red zone to make the life totals 15-17 in Triple Tribe’s favor.

I untap and draw Nameless Inversion. Solid! I attack with the Vanquisher and the Colossus. My opponent animates Mutavault, and blocks the Vanquisher with it. As I cannot target the Mutavault due to Shroud, I target the Scion to shrink the Mutavault down to a 2/2 chump blocker. The life totals are now 17-11 in my favor. I decline to play the Reflecting Pool in my hand, as it is the last card in it and I will get little value from giving up that information.

Faeries draws Scion of Oona, plays Island and Sower on Colossus.

Draw Devoted Druid. Since I have a chumper for the Colossus, I’m definitely swinging with the Vanquisher this turn. The life totals go to 17-8 in my favor, but the tide is turning in favor of the Faeries. I play Devoted Druid and pass.

Draw Swamp and play it. Play Scion of Oona and swing with the Colossus and Sower. Devoted Druid chumps, taking the life totals to 14-8 in Triple Tribe’s favor.

Draw Crib Swap. Not quite what I was looking for. Now I have to try to trade my Vanquisher for his (well, my) Colossus just to stay alive; he can trivially win a race against my Vanquisher just by maintaining topdeck parity with me.

Do I play the Swap now, or do I wait until the opponent’s upkeep? Well, if I wait to play it on his upkeep, Cryptic Command will eviscerate me. On the other hand, if he has Cryptic Command I’m basically dead anyway unless I topdeck Cloudthresher, so at least that line of play would leave him tapped down in case I do so. Of note is the fact that the token he gets will have summoning sickness as well if I resolve it on his upkeep, which will help out my life total a bit if I topdeck a blocker. I decide to go for it on his upkeep, and pass.

Faeries untaps and the opponent casts Crib Swap on Scion of Oona. Here comes another question. Do I Spellstutter Sprite it? If I do, I will have six power worth of flyers on the table, and can be lethal in three attacks. However, if he topdecks Firespout, it will Wrath me when I could have stopped it with Sprite. On the other hand, I can let it resolve, trade Colossus for Vanquisher, and just beat down with Sower and the token. That will take five attacks to kill instead of three, but if he drops a blocker in front of the Shapeshifter token, it will be even more than that. In the interim, he can still draw a plain old Cloudthresher and obliterate me with that.

Another question: do I swing with the Colossus and offer the trade with Vanquisher? On one hand, the Colossus is a liability; if he resolves a sweeper it will end me if it gets him back the Colossus and the Vanquisher. On the other hand, if I keep the Colossus and topdeck Cryptic Command or another Sower, I will be able to swing with my Colossus to kill him. Then again, topdecking Cryptic Command or another Sower will probably end the game in my favor regardless, so who cares? Let’s play assuming that rose-colored scenario doesn’t come to fruition.

In other words, counter the Crib Swap with Spellstutter Sprite and draw… Spellstutter Sprite! It’s going to be an early Christmas. Swing with the team; Vanquisher and Colossus trade, and the life totals are now 10-8 in Triple Tribe’s Favor.

Draw Ancient Amphitheater. Play it and pass.

Draw Swamp. Swing for six and pass.

Draw Murmuring Bosk. Concede.

I have Faeries boarding like this:

+1 Thoughtseize
+1 Sower of Temptation
+3 Shriekmaw
-3 Nameless Inversion
-2 Peppersmoke

Triple Tribe boards like this:

+3 Gaddock Teeg
-3 Oversoul of Dusk

My opening hand is two Vivid Groves, Ancient Amphitheater, Firespout, Crib Swap, Brion Stoutarm, and Chameleon Colossus. This hand would be great against Kithkin, but it is terrible against Faeries. They will not play anything worth Firespouting in their first two turns, meaning my first play of the game will be a turn 4 4/4. That’s way too slow against a deck like Faeries. I ship it back for a one-lander that has only Reflecting Pool in it. I ship that back for Vivid Meadow, Ancient Amphitheater, Reflecting Pool, Gaddock Teeg, Crib Swap.

My opponent’s opener is two Islands, Mutavault, Thoughtseize, Spellstutter Sprite, and two Mistbind Cliques. Ordinarily this would be worth shipping back, but against a five-card hand, the fact that this hand is slow does not matter as much as the fact that it can most likely crush a five-card hand from the opponent. Going to six seems riskier than necessary here.

Triple Tribe leads with Vivid Meadow.

Faeries draws another Thoughtseize and plays Mutavault.

I draw Murmuring Bosk, play Reflecting Pool, and Gaddock Teeg.

Faeries draws a third Mistbind Clique and plays Island.

I draw Gilt-Leaf Palace. Play Ancient Amphitheater, revealing Crib Swap, and swing Teeg into the Mutavault. It doesn’t block, obviously.

Faeries draws Spellstutter Sprite, plays Island, and passes.

I draw another Murmuring Bosk, beat with Teeg, and play the Bosk untapped (revealing Crib Swap again; he already knows I have it, and the extra mana could help me play around Broken Ambitions).

Faeries draws Sunken Ruins and plays it, then Thoughtseize on Crib Swap.

I draw Vivid Grove and play it. Given my ratio of seven lands to two spells, one of which was just Thoughtseized, I’m pretty sure this game is over. (Next turn I draw a second Gaddock Teeg.)

Match 2:

Game 1: I lose the coin flip. Faeries keeps an opener of two Secluded Glen, Swamp, Bitterblossom, Scion of Oona, and two Mistbind Clique. My opener is four lands, Wren’s Run Vanquisher, and two Dorans. I mull that into Vivid Meadow, two Gilt-Leaf Palace, Doran, Firespout, and Cloudthresher. Bad, but not as bad as five would be. Keep.

Faeries leads with Secluded Glen.

I draw Wren’s Run Vanquisher and play Vivid Meadow.

Faeries draws Sunken Ruins, plays Secluded Glen revealing Bitterblossom, and Bitterblossom.

I draw a second Doran and play a Gilt-Leaf Palace.

Faeries gets a token, draws Peppersmoke, and plays Sunken Ruins.

I draw Vivid Grove, play Gilt-Leaf Palace revealing Vanquisher, and Doran. He resolves. Scion of Oona comes down on my end step.

Faeries gets a token, draws Mutavault, and plays it. Scion and a token attack for three.

On my upkeep, Mistbind Clique comes in, championing the tapped token. I draw Murmuring Bosk and play Vivid Grove. I send in Doran, and it is chumped.

Faeries gets a token, draws a third Mistbind Clique, plays Swamp, and attacks with Clique and Scion to swing the totals to 18-11 in favor of the Fae.

On my upkeep, another Mistbind Clique comes in. I evoke Cloudthresher in response, forcing him to champion Mutavault. I draw Murmuring Bosk, play it, and attack with Doran; it is not blocked.

Faeries gets a token, draws Sunken Ruins, and bashes Triple Tribe down to 1.

I draw Vivid Grove and concede.

We sideboard the same way as last time.

Game 2: My opener is two Murmuring Bosk, Devoted Druid, Gaddock Teeg, Chameleon Colossus, and two Cloudthresher. Sure! Faeries mulligans a five-lander with two Sowers into a one-lander (just Mutavault again) into Swamp, Mutavault, Selcuded Glen, Thoughtseize, Sower.

I lead with Murmuring Bosk.

Faeries draws Sower of Temptation, plays Swamp, and Thoughtseizes Cloudthresher. There is a temptation to take Devoted Druid and go for the mana screw, but really the Fae’s best shot at winning this game is to get a Sower to stick on something meaty like Chameleon Colossus, and those two Cloudthreshers are the main thing getting in the way of that plan.

Draw Brion Stoutarm. Here’s a question: do I play Devoted Druid or Gaddock Teeg here? Gaddock shuts off Broken Ambitions, but Druid lets me land a Chameleon Colossus next turn unless he specifically has Broken Ambitions. Given that Colossus is my only threat here, it seems that going all-in on “don’t have Ambitions!” with my only threat (until I topdeck more lands) is just opening the door for my five-card opponent to steal the game from me. Thus, I play Bosk revealing Colossus, and Gaddock Teeg.

Faeries draws Sunken Ruins and plays… which land? Mutavault or Island? Well, given that Gaddock Teeg makes a play of Island only threatening because of Spellstutter Sprite – which could only counter Thoughtseize at this point – while Mutavault will probably stave off two points of Gaddock damage, I’d say it’s Mutavault. Play it and pass.

I draw Murmuring Bosk. Do I attack Gaddock into Mutavault? Not if I want to keep shutting down Cryptic Command. Besides, if he wants to keep his mana tied up threatening Mutavault for the rest of the game, that’s fine. I’ll get my hits in when he taps for something. Play Bosk and Devoted Druid.

Faeries draws Island and plays Secluded Glen.

I draw Firespout and simply play Chameleon Colossus. I’m still not swinging Gaddock into Mutavault.

Faeries draws Island, plays it, and plays Sower on Colossus.

I draw another Colossus. There’s no sense burning a Cloudthresher that I am one mana away from hardcasting, so I just cast Firespout (neat how I can do that productively off three Bosks and a Devoted Druid, huh?) to get back my Colossus and swing with my Legendary Kithkin Advisor.

Faeries draws Vendilion Clique. Interesting. When should I use this? If I do it right now, there’s no chance he will be able to hardcast Cloudthresher in response. On the other hand, if I do it during his attack step, I’ll probably be able to block and kill Gaddock Teeg, meaning topdecked Cryptic Commands and Broken Ambitions will be back in business. Then again, if I pass with Mutavault mana up again, he’s probably going to continue with his refusal to attack Gaddock into it, meaning I’ll have wasted my time. Play Vendilion Clique, send Cloudthresher to the bottom, then play Island and pass.

I draw Ancient Amphitheater from the Clique, and then another for my draw step. I still want to protect Gaddock, so I send in my Colossus alone. It is not chumped. Instead of pumping, I let him drop to 12, then play Ancient Amphitheater and Brion Stoutarm in my second main phase.

Faeries draws Shriekmaw, Evokes it on Brion Stoutarm, steals Colossus with Sower, and hits for three with Vendilion Clique. The life totals stand at 15-12 in Triple Tribe’s favor.

I draw Gilt-Leaf Palace. I will certainly attack Gaddock into Sower of Temptation; obviously he does not block. I play Ancient Amphitheater and my other Colossus, leaving Gilt-Leaf Palace in hand because I have more Elves than Giants in this deck.

Faeries draws Scion of Oona and obviously attacks with everything. As Triple Tribe, how do I block? When mine can pump and his cannot, blocking his Colossus with mine seems incredibly foolish. Chumping with Devoted Druid, on the other hand, seems like a fairly good use for that card. I do it. Scion comes down to push in some extra damage, bringing the life totals to 8-10 in favor of the Fae when the dust settles.

I draw the fourth Murmuring Bosk and am dead on the board.

Match 3:

Game 1: I win the flip and mulligan a one-lander into a five-lander (plus Stoutarm) into Vivid Grove, Murmuring Bosk, Thoughtseize, Doran, Brion Stoutarm. Faeries mulligans double Thoughtseize, Cryptic Command, a Mutavault, and three Islands into a one-lander into Sunken Ruins, Reflecting Pool, Island, Nameless Inversion, Mistbind Clique.

I have two potential turn 1 plays. One is to lead with Murmuring Bosk and Thoughtseize, and the other is to start with Vivid Grove. If I lead with Vivid Grove, I will cost myself a Vivid Counter but will save a point of life. I will also get to see another card in my opponent’s hand. However, if I go with the Bosk, I will save a Vivid counter and will get to snag a potential one-drop. Since no one-drops in this format are actually worth Thoughtseizing (except maybe Flamekin Harbinger?), I don’t value that very highly. What really solidifies me on the turn 1 Grove, though, is the fact that I can topdeck a comes-in-tapped land and still play Doran on turn 3 if I go with this play. Play the Grove and pass.

Faeries draws Cryptic Command, plays Island, and passes.

I draw Gilt-Leaf Palace and play Thoughtseize off the Vivid Grove. I take the Cryptic Command, leaving Mistbind Clique, Nameless Inversion, and lands.

Faeries draws Bitterblossom, does a victory lap, plays Sunken Ruins, and the enchantment.

I draw a second Murmuring Bosk, play it, reveal Doran, and play Doran.

Faeries gets a token, draws Cryptic Command, and plays Reflecting Pool.

I draw Vivid Meadow and hit with Doran. A token jumps in the way. I play the Meadow and pass.

Faeries gets a fresh token and draws Mistbind Clique.

I draw Vivid Grove and bash with Doran. Again he is stopped by Force Field. I play Brion Stoutarm and Vivid Grove.

Faeries gets a new token and draws Thoughtseize. Casting it reveals Murmuring Bosk.

I draw Vivid Meadow and smash with the team. Brion is chumped and finished off post-combat by Nameless Inversion, while Doran gets in for five. I play the Vivid Meadow with the life totals at 23-10 in my favor.

Faeries gets a new token, draws Island, and plays it.

I draw another Doran and attack. Mid-combat, Mistbind Clique comes in, removes Bitterblossom, and team-blocks with a token to kill Doran. Bitterblossom comes back, I am tapped out, and I pass the turn.

Faeries gets a new token, draws Spellstutter Sprite, and passes.

On my upkeep, a fresh Mistbind Clique comes in, removing Bitterblossom again, and tapping me out once again. I draw Wren’s Run Vanquisher and pass.

Faeries draws Mutavault, plays it, and swings for five with the Clique and a token.

I draw my third Doran and play it. It is countered by Spellstutter Sprite. I play the other one in my hand and it resolves.

Faeries draws a second Cryptic Command and swings with everything but Mutavault.

I draw Firespout and swing with Doran. His damage takes the life totals to 12-8 in my favor. I play Firespout post-combat, and am met with Cryptic Command, bouncing Doran. I replay him and pass.

Faeries draws Vendilion Clique and swings with the team to knock Triple Tribe to six.

I draw Devoted Druid, Doran is bounced by Command, and I lose.

Game 2:

My opening hand has two lands, and they are both Reflecting Pools. I mulligan into a hand that has one land, and it is a Reflecting Pool. I keep at five yet again, with Vivid Grove, Ancient Amphitheater, Nameless Inversion, Doran, and Crib Swap. Faeries keeps at seven with Secluded Glen, Sunken Ruins, Reflecting Pool, Island, Bitterblossom, Nameless Inversion, Spellstutter Sprite.

I play Vivid Grove and pass.

Faeries draws Scion of Oona and plays Secluded Glen.

I draw Thoughtseize and play it, snagging Bitterblossom. I play Ancient Amphitheater and pass.

Faeries draws Spellstutter Sprite and plays Island.

I draw Wren’s Run Vanquisher and play it, revealing Nameless Inversion.

Faeries draws Vendilion Clique and plays it after a Sunken Ruins, sending Doran packing.

I draw Thoughtseize from the Clique and Murmuring Bosk for my draw step. I play it, revealing Nameless Inversion, and cast Thoughtseize. As my only threat is Wren’s Run Vanquisher, I take Nameless Inversion over Scion of Oona or either Spellstutter Sprite. I also cast my own Inversion (exhausting my Vivid Grove) on the Clique and swing for three.

Faeries draws Shriekmaw, plays Reflecting Pool, and passes.

I draw a second Vanquisher and attack with the first one. Life totals are now 15-14 in my favor. I then play the one in my hand, revealing Crib Swap. Jump into the shoes of Faeries for a second: given a hand of two Spellstutter Sprites, Scion of Oona, and Shriekmaw, with four lands out and an opponent who has only one card left in hand (which you know is Crib Swap), is it worth it to counter this Vanquisher using a pair of Sprites?

The alternative is to let it resolve, play Scion of Oona, and then cast Shriekmaw on it next turn. If you topdeck a land, you can do that while keeping around the 3/2 Shriekmaw body, which can then trade for the existing Vanquisher (or Crib Swap, more likely) while leaving you with two Sprites still in hand for whatever comes next. That’s pretty sweet, particularly since the only real bad thing that can happen while you’re tapped out and the opponent has only three lands is that he topdecks Doran.

On the other hand, if you don’t topdeck the fifth land to hardcast Shriekmaw, then you probably have to evoke it and deal with the existing Vanquisher via other topdecks. Given that this line of play practically guarantees that Scion will bite it to Crib Swap, it will take three blocking Faeries (or two and a Shapeshifter from Crib Swap) to take out the other Vanquisher, or a topdecked Mistbind Clique, Vendilion Clique, Sower of Temptation, or Cryptic Command. Since a topdeck of any of those four cards, or a land, makes it better to just let this Vanquisher resolve, it seems clear that that is the correct play.

Faeries pops in a Scion of Oona on end step, then untaps and draws Sunken Ruins, plays it, and Shriekmaws a Vanquisher. Scion gets in for a point to even the life totals at 14 apiece.

Triple Tribe draws and plays Vivid Grove, casts Crib Swap on Shriekmaw, and beats with the Vanquisher. 14-11.

Faeries draws and plays Mutavault. Scion and Shapeshifter attack for three; the life totals are tied again at 11-11.

Triple Tribe draws Chameleon Colossus and beats with Vanquisher. If you are Faeries here, do you block and trade with Mutavault? Well, you have two Spellstutter Sprites in hand which can currently counter a four-drop, and the opponent has only four lands and one card in hand. You also have six power on the board to the opponent’s three, so you are clearly winning the ground race. Since you are winning the race and can hard-counter the opponent’s next two spells, why bother slowing down the race you’re winning by blocking with Mutavault? Just take the damage and counter the next two spells for the win.

Chameleon Colossus does not resolve, and a topdeck of Vivid Meadow next turn ends the game.

Takeaways

For those scoring at home:

Game 1: Unanswered Sower of Temptation
Game 2: Mull to five
Game 3: Bitterblossom, Scion, Mistbind, Mistbind
Game 4: Unanswered Sower of Temptation
Game 5: Mull to five
Game 6: Mull to five

Ouch.

Did I learn much about the matchup? Not much. In the 30 or so games I have played with this deck against Faeries before today, I have lost a grand total of twice to an unanswered Sower of Temptation. In the six games I played today, I doubled that count. Unfortunately, sometimes you just don’t have the answer – and today I didn’t have it. Sometimes you also can’t find a hand with more than one land in it, and today I didn’t have many of those hands either.

Still, some interesting situations came up. I’m always surprised how much I learn when I record games in this level of detail; towards the end of Game 6, I recorded a knee-jerk countering of a Wren’s Run Vanquisher with two Spellstutter Sprites before heading off to lunch. When I came back, I decided to explain my decision before committing to the play, and in walking through it, realized that it was actually better to let it resolve. (If only I had that kind of time in a PTQ!)

Next week, I’m hoping Eventide will present us with the cure for cancer (Faeries) and make the format fun again.

Stay tuned!

Richard Feldman
Team :S
[email protected]